2023 - Position 102

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Match Play. Blue trails 1-5 to to 11. Should Blue double? If doubled, should White take?

For money this is a borderline double and a trivial take. With only nine checkers in the zone and only one cover number for the ace-point blot Blue could be forgiven for waiting.

At this score, however, the double becomes mandatory because of the gammon threat (35% chance). White’s take is still very easy because of the strength of his home board and no weaknesses other than his two checkers on the bar.

If you move a checker from Blue’s 6-pt to his 5-pt, giving him two cover numbers for the ace-point blot, then the position becomes double and pass. To quote Robertie once again, “everything matters”.